Louisiana came in at No. 18 in 2013 for dog fight claims, State Farm reports, moving up from No. 21 in 2012. State Farm says 70 dog bite claims were filed in the state in 2013, and 60 were filed in 2012.

Nationwide, State Farm paid out more than half a billion dollars in the past five years in dog-bit claims, with $104 million of that total paid out last year.

State Farm is teaming up with Victoria Stilwell, an internationally renowned dog trainer, author and star of Animal Planet's "It's Me or the Dog,'' to teach people how to be responsible pet owners and reduce the number of dog bites. National Dog Bite Prevention Week is May 18-24, 2014.

Stilwell does not advocate banning certain breeds of dogs, but encourages raising awareness of canine behavior through education, as well as responsible dog ownership.

State Farm says it does not ask the breed of dog owned when writing or renewing homeowner insurance and does not track the breed of dog involved in dog bite incidents.

What do you think? Are you surprised, given instances such as the recent death of a 4-year-old in Houma, that Louisiana did not rank higher? Do you agree that certain breeds should not be banned and that the problem can be reduced with better education and responsible ownership? Leave your comments below.